Finnish university proposes to train Saudi youth

A polytechnic university in Finland is currently looking for business opportunities in hospitality and tourism management, and vocational education programs in the Kingdom.
Lars J Eltvik, managing director of Haaga-Helia, who is currently displaying the institute’s products and services at the International Exhibition & Forum for Education 2013 (IEFE), is interested in sharing its experience with Saudi Arabia.
The education forum opened yesterday at the Riyadh Exhibition Center.
“Through education, research and development, Haaga-Helia prepares professionals for business and public services. We offer our students a wide choice of studies, great opportunities for specialization, high-level education in Finnish, Swedish and English, and access to business networks around the world,” Eltvik said. “The starting point for all our activities lies in the needs of businesses, whose demands we meet with our work-related higher education. We provide our students with the knowledge and skills for life long learning and development in the workplace.”
Eltvik said his company officers a portfolio of training services covering a wide range of personal and business development topics. The company has been training professionals for over 120 years.
He said the services include various development programs and modules, vocational teacher education and an executive MBA program. “We can also tailor all of our programs and modules to meet your specific requirements or develop an individual training program,” he said.
The other faculties of the college include international business, business information technology, hospitality and tourism management, management assistance education, sports and leisure management, experience and wellness management, journalism and vocational teacher education.
He said that the Kingdom had taken steps to impart vocational education to its youths.
“I understand that Technical Vocational Training Corporation, TVTC, has plans to establish 11 hospitality and tourism management colleges under public private sector partnership,” he said, adding that his college also made a quotation for the tender through a consortium to set up a college in Riyadh.
The good results of Finland’s education system are based on the high quality of our pedagogical methodologies and on our proactive approach to teaching, he added. Haaga-Helia School of Vocational Teacher Education implements modern tools and the latest technology to ensure that graduates will excel at their profession.
“We emphasize collaboration and personalization of the learning process as well as research, development and quality in our work,” he said.
He said it is meant for both practicing teachers and other applicants who intend to work as qualified teachers in universities of applied sciences, vocational colleges, adult education organizations and in-service training. Different customized implementations are also available to suit local circumstances and specific needs.
The program, he said, has a special emphasis on the integration of theory and practice, as well as on encouraging students to participate in the developmental efforts of their own institutions. It fosters an investigative and development-oriented approach to teaching.
The Finnish education system is regarded by many academics as a model for the rest of the world. Finland has been ranked the highest performing country in three consecutive OECD PISA surveys (Program for International Student Assessment). Finland’s most recent score, in 2006, was the best result ever achieved in any subject area in any PISA survey. Finland was in 2009 ranked first in the world in the Legato Prosperity rating, which is based on overall economic performance and quality of life.
Finland has excellent connections with the rest of the world with more than 30 international airlines having regular routes to Helsinki. The national airline Finnair offers direct flights to many destinations in Asia, almost all European capital cities and the USA.
Through our programs, he added we are providing world class training and consulting to improve the effectiveness of your organization and to improve your performance.